They were joking. He achieved it anyway.
Horn, ex-member of the Buggles (Video Killed The Radio Star) and short-term singer for arty prog-rockers Yes, had been dabbling with new studio technology throughout the late '70s.
His vision of a future where faceless mad-scientist types might replace recording artists had informed his work with the Buggles and led him to become an early adopter of computer-based instruments, such as the Fairlight digital sampling synthesizer.
The Lexicon Of Love marked the first joint outing for Horn's future Art Of Noise team of engineers, arrangers, programmers and back-up musicians.
They applied a spit-polished sheen to the band's sound, layering and manipulating instruments, adding strings, horns and samples and finely honing every edge with a production style that would define the '80s.
It suited the band, with sharply-dressed crooner Martin Fry up front, down to the ground.
Their hearts were in soul music but their set-up was in synth-pop and disco; Horn's magic lifted their performance into fresh territory that was unapologetically glamorous, right down to the gold lamé suits and slick coiffures.
It helped that ABC had 10 strong numbers to work with and a charismatic singer who knew how to squeeze a song for its bittersweet juice.
Singles Poison Arrow, Look Of Love, Tears Are Not Enough and All Of My Heart were each Top 20 UK hits, and the album topped the charts there, in Finland and New Zealand.
Several Fry-led incarnations of ABC have followed but none has reached comparable heights.
For Horn, it was just the beginning. His production credits have since included Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Malcolm McLaren, Pet Shop Boys, Seal, Grace Jones, Paul McCartney and many more.
